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Apr 13th, 2009


Analysis: Obama Scores Win on Pirate Crisis

Obama administration passes first critical national security test


Crew members of the ship celebrate on the deck of the Maersk Alabama at the Mombasa port in Kenya, Sunday, April 12, 2009, after their captain was released. Guarded by Navy Seals, the crew of an American ship reached a Kenyan port Saturday evening without their captain, still held hostage by Somali pirates in a lifeboat hundreds of miles from shore. Even as the Maersk Alabama pulled into port, the crew of an Italian-flagged tugboat was being held by pirates who seized it in a new attack. (Photo credit: Unknown; possiblySayyid Azim / AP)

By Jennifer Loven

April 12, 2009

WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy is showing only glimmers of life and two costly wars remain in the balance, but President Barack Obama’s “no drama” handling of the Indian Ocean hostage crisis proved a big win for his administration in its first critical national security test.

Obama’s quiet backstage decision to authorize the Defense Department to take necessary action if Capt. Richard Phillips’ life was in imminent danger gave a Navy commander the go-ahead to order snipers to fire on the pirates holding the cargo ship captain at gunpoint.

For Obama, the benefits were instantly clear: an American life saved and a major victory notched against an increasingly worrisome scourge of the seas off the Horn of Africa.

Obama’s handling of the crisis showed a president who was comfortable in relying on the U.S. military, much as his predecessor, George W. Bush, did.

Will Obama benefit politically?

But it also showed a new commander in chief who was willing to use all the tools at his disposal, bringing in federal law enforcement officials to handle the judicial elements of the crisis.

The rescue appeared to vindicate Obama’s muted but determined handling of the incident. What won’t be known for some time is whether Obama will benefit politically.

When Obama campaigns for re-election, he may take Bush’s approach of turning any such incident into evidence of his leadership acumen. On the other hand, Obama didn’t go before the cameras Sunday to trumpet the success, instead releasing a written statement that saluted the bravery of the military and Phillips but claimed no credit for himself. …

Still, it goes some way toward dispelling the notion that a liberal Democrat with a known distaste for war — Obama campaigned on his consistent opposition to the Iraq invasion — doesn’t have the will to call on U.S. military power.

The sniper operation Sunday, with pirate guns aimed at Phillips, was a daring, high-stakes gambit, and it could have easily gone awry. If it had, the fallout would have probably landed hardest on Obama. …

Declined to answer questions

Since the standoff began last Tuesday, Obama made no public, in-person remarks on the topic, even declining to answer when questions were shouted at him during a press availability.

He didn’t call in his Cabinet for a high-profile command meeting. He let military and top administration officials do the talking, but even they kept saber-rattling out of the equation.

White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said Obama’s silence should not be interpreted to mean that he wasn’t deeply involved. The president’s public posture was calculated to not raise the temperature on the situation or give the hostage-takers anything to exploit.

“Let’s not confuse a public role with being on top of the situation,” Emanuel said. “If you’d interjected yourself, you would make the discussions that were happening more difficult.”

So what Obama did was receive regular briefings, sometimes as often as half a dozen times a day. He weighed in with two critical decisions allowing the military to take action to save Phillips’ life. And he laid the groundwork for a federal criminal law enforcement response.

White House officials said the Justice Department is already reviewing evidence to determine whether to file criminal charges against the captured Somali pirate. The U.S. is treating the matter as a criminal case because officials have found no direct ties between East African pirates and terror groups.

Obama doesn’t like labels for himself or catch phrases for policy. So it’s notable that in an administration that has for all intents and purposes banned the phrase “war on terror,” no one called the pirates “terrorists.”

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Late update

An Early Military Victory for Obama

Photo credit: AFP / Getty
Crewmen from the Maersk Alabama celebrate after hearing of the release of their captain from Somalian pirates. (Photo credit: AFP / Getty Images)

By Michael D. Shear
The Washington Post
April 13, 2009

It was one of the earliest tests of the new American president — a small military operation off the coast of a Third World nation. But as President Bill Clinton found out in October 1993, even minor failures can have long-lasting consequences.

Clinton’s efforts to land a small contingent of troops in Haiti were rebuffed, for the world to see, by a few hundred gun-toting Haitians. As the USS Harlan County retreated, so did the president’s reputation.

For President Obama, last week’s confrontation with Somali pirates posed similar political risks to a young commander in chief who had yet to prove himself to his generals or his public.

But the result — a dramatic and successful rescue operation by U.S. Special Operations forces — left Obama with an early victory that could help build confidence in his ability to direct military actions abroad.

Throughout the past four days, White House officials played down Obama’s role in the hostage drama. Until yesterday, he made no public statements about the pirates.

In fact, aides said yesterday, Obama had been briefed 17 times since he returned from his trip abroad, including several times from the White House Situation Room. And without giving too many details, senior White House officials made it clear that Obama had provided the authority for the rescue.

“The president’s focus was on saving and protecting the life of the captain,” one adviser said. Friday evening, after a National Security Council telephone update, Obama granted U.S. forces what aides called “the authority to use appropriate force to save the life of the captain.” On Saturday at 9:20 a.m., Obama went further, giving authority to an “additional set of U.S. forces to engage in potential emergency actions.”

A top military official, Vice Adm. William E. Gortney, commander of the Fifth Fleet, explained that Obama issued a standing order that the military was to act if the captain’s life was in immediate danger. …

After the rescue ended, White House officials immediately offered expanded information about Obama’s role, though the president simply released a statement praising the troops and expressing pride in the captain’s bravery.

The operation pales in scope and complexity to the wars underway in Iraq and Afghanistan. And Obama’s adversaries are unlikely to be mollified by his performance in a four-day hostage drama.

Nonetheless, it may help to quell criticism leveled at Obama that he came to office as a Democratic antiwar candidate who could prove unwilling or unable to harness military might when necessary. …

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Related reports on this site


Click on image for larger view

Barack Obama’s Leadership Style

Barack Obama: A Question of Toughness

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IRAQ UPDATE

U.S. Military Deaths in Iraq

Image: A team of airmen moves transfer case
A team of airmen moves the transfer case containing the body of Army corporal Jason G. Pautsch at Dover Air Force Base on Sunday, April 12, 2009. (Photo credit: Tim Shaffer / Reuters)

As of Sunday, April 12, 2009, at least 4,272 members of the U.S. military had died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

Latest identifications:


Marine Lance Cpl. Nelson M. Lantigua, 20, Miami, died March 31, 2009 in Taqaddum, Iraq, after a non-hostile incident in Anbar province. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 10 Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.


Army Sgt. Daniel J. Beard, 24, of Buffalo, N.Y., died April 3, 2009 in Al Diwaniyah, Iraq, of injuries sustained from a non-combat incident. He was assigned to the 147th Postal Company, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, Wiesbaden, Germany


Marine Lance Cpl. Stephen F. Dearmon, 21, Crossville, Tenn., died April 3, 2009 in Taqaddum, Iraq, after a non-combat incident in Anbar province. He was a combat photographer assigned to the 2nd Marine Logistics Group, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.


Army Sgt. Edward W. Forrest Jr., 25, St. Louis, died April 10, 2009 when his vehicle was struck by an explosive in a suicide bombing in Mosul. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.


Army Pfc. Bryce E. Gautier, 22, Cypress, Calif., died April 10, 2009 when his vehicle was struck by an explosive in a suicide bombing in Mosul. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.


Army Staff Sgt. Bryan E. Hall, 32, Elk Grove, Calif., died April 10, 2009 when his vehicle was struck by an explosive in a suicide bombing in Mosul. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.


Army National Guard Sgt. Christopher D. Loza, 24, Abilene, Texas, died April 10, 2009 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, D.C., of a noncombat-related illness after becoming ill March 17 in Radwaniyah, Iraq. He was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 124th Cavalry Regiment, 56th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 36th Infantry Division, Waco, Texas.

U.S. Army Cpl. Jason G. Pautsch (Photo: Maya Alleruzo / AP file)
U.S. Army Cpl. Jason G. Pautsch
(Photo: Maya Alleruzo / AP)


Army Cpl. Jason G. Pautsch, 20, Davenport, Iowa, died April 10, 2009 when his vehicle was struck by an explosive in a suicide bombing in Mosul. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.


Army Staff Sgt. Gary L. Woods Jr., 24, Lebanon Junction, Ky., died April 10, 2009 when his vehicle was struck by an explosive in a suicide bombing in Mosul. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.

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Remember Their Sacrifice

Remember Their Sacrifice

Related links

Iraq Casualties

Afghanistan Casualties

Honor the Fallen

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Visit Military Times — The top source for military news

———

Security Developments in Iraq

Following are security developments in Iraq on Sunday, April 12, 2009, as reported by Reuters.

BAGHDAD – Four U.S. soldiers were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their vehicle in Taji, just north of Baghdad, the U.S. military said in a statement.

SALHUDDIN – A roaside bomb killed a U.S. soldier in Salahuddin province north of Baghdad, the U.S. military said in a statement.

BAGHDAD – Seven people were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded in the Zaafaraniya neighborhood of south-eastern Baghdad, police said.

MOSUL – Two policemen were killed in separate attacks on police checkpoints on Saturday in Mosul, 240 miles north of Baghdad, police said.

MOSUL – An off-duty policemen was wounded by gunmen on Saturday, police said.





2 Responses to “Obama Passes First Crisis Test”
  1. Immelman for Congress » Blog Archive » Iraq-Afghanistan Casualties Says:

    […] Obama Passes First Crisis Test […]

  2. Immelman for Congress » Blog Archive » Americans Die in Hellfire Strike Says:

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